Healthcare has spent years working to make medical information more connected. But there is another question we may not be asking often enough. In fact, we’ve seen this same scenario play out on the popular television series, The Pitt. What happens when that connection disappears?
Cyberattacks Remain a Serious Challenge Across Healthcare
Comparitech’s ransomware tracker recorded 410 attacks against healthcare organizations worldwide during the first half of 2026, nearly 14% more than during the previous six-month period. The United States accounted for 225 of those attacks. And the targets extend well beyond hospitals. Pharmaceutical companies, technology vendors, billing organizations and other businesses throughout the healthcare ecosystem are increasingly being attacked. In late July, Amgen disclosed that hackers had stolen company data and patient health information in a cybersecurity incident involving third-party cloud storage systems. Protecting healthcare data is critical. Earlier this year, a ransomware attack at the University of Mississippi Medical Center affected its electronic health record and other network systems, forcing roughly three dozen clinics to close temporarily and elective procedures to be canceled. Some patients, including those receiving chemotherapy, faced delays and disruptions in care. That is when cybersecurity moves beyond an IT problem. It becomes a patient safety issue.
Access and Availability Are Critical to Patient Data
Healthcare understandably focuses on protecting the confidentiality of medical information. But the HIPAA Security Rule also addresses the “availability” of electronic protected health information. In other words, protecting healthcare data also means making sure authorized people can access it when it is needed. We can build APIs. Connect EHRs. Expand health information (HIE) networks. Move more information into cloud environments. But if access to a patient’s medical history depends entirely on a functioning network, internet connection, health system or EHR vendor, we have created another potential point of failure. Imagine arriving at an emergency department during an outage. Everything reverts to paper. What medications are you taking? What allergies do you have? When was your last CT scan? What surgery did you have five years ago? Those answers should not disappear simply because a network connection does.
The Medical Record Should Travel With the Patient
MedKaz® takes a different approach. It is much simpler, relies on no network connectivity or proprietary EHR vendors. MedKaz creates a secure, portable and searchable health record containing instant information from all providers of care. Patients carry their Medkaz device on their keyring, where it can be instantly accessed from a non-networked computer or tablet. No internet connectivity is necessary. MedKaz isn’t intended to replace the EHR, interoperability networks or healthcare cybersecurity infrastructure. It adds a critical element that these systems cannot guarantee…TRUST. A copy of the patient’s health history that travels with the patient. Because healthcare resilience isn’t only about getting our systems back online. It’s making sure clinicians can still get the information they need to care for the person sitting in front of them, anytime care is needed.
One Record. Every Visit. Any Provider. Thats the MedKaz difference. Find out more and get yours today: https://medkaz.com/get-medkaz/
Find out more about our Physician Pilot Program: https://medkaz.com/physician-pilot-program/
